Court Clears Way For Davie Utility Plan

The Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the city of Sunrise had no right to interfere with Davie`s $35 million utility revenue bond sale.

The decision clears the way for an ambitious utility expansion program that will enable the town to provide water to the far western reaches of the town and solve its sewage disposal problems for the next 30 years.

``This bond litigation has been hanging over us and kind of bringing everything to a halt, but now we`re ready to go,`` said Davie Town Administrator Irv Rosenbaum.

``I don`t think we hold any malice for Sunrise. We`ll just put this behind us and hope someday we can work with them in a positive manner,`` Rosenbaum said.

Sunrise attorneys attempted to block Davie`s bond validation in March, claiming that Davie would use the bonds to extend utility service into the disputed west Davie service area. But Broward Circuit Court Judge Lawrence Korda approved the bonds, agreeing with Davie attorneys that a bond validation hearing is not the place to discuss service area disputes.

Sunrise appealed Korda`s ruling in the Supreme Court in March. In a one-page decision released Thursday, the high court affirmed Korda`s ruling.

``We agree with Davie that Sunrise`s claim . . . is not a pertinent issue to be raised in the validation hearing,`` the court said. The decision was unanimous.

The Sunrise bond appeal forced Davie officials to arrange interim financing for the first phase of the utility expansion program and rankled the already strained relations between the cities.

In 30 to 60 days the town will begin to market the first $10 million in utility bonds, which will be used to refinance debts to the previous owners of its two utility plants, Rosenbaum said.

Construction of a $4 million water treatment plant is scheduled to begin in July and will be financed by the bonds.

The expansion program also will include a $2.47 million sewage treatment plant and a $10.65 million pipeline -- a joint project with Cooper City -- to carry treated sewage to the Hollywood ocean outfall line.

In a related development, state Department of Environmental Regulation officials Thursday confirmed that a $1.36 million state grant was awarded this week to Davie for the construction of the sewage treatment plant.

Davie and Cooper City are in line for up to $3.1 million in state grants for the pipeline project, but the grant money could run out before that project is funded, according to Richard W. Smith, the DER`s wastewater management and grants bureau chief.

``They could get the full $3.1 million, and possibly they could get $2.5 million, and possibly they could get nothing at all,`` Smith said Thursday.

Acting Sunrise Mayor Bob Butterworth said he was not surprised by Thursday`s Supreme Court ruling and said he hoped the neighboring cities could work out the utility service area dispute without going to court.

On June 6 Sunrise attorneys filed a lawsuit in Broward Circuit Court asking a judge to determine which city -- Davie or Sunrise -- has the right to provide utility service to west Davie.

``Neither the city of Sunrise nor the city of Davie want to run up a great deal of legal fees if it can be resolved beforehand,`` Butterworth said.

``Obviously the city of Sunrise is not going to give anything away, but there has to be some middle ground somewhere,`` he said.

The dispute between Davie and Sunrise over utility service areas goes back to a 1971 agreement between the former owners of Davie`s east utility plant and the former owners of Sunrise`s Pine Island utility plant on Pine Island Road.

The previous owners of the two plants agreed that the Pine Island plant would service the area west of University Drive, between State Road 84 and the South New River Canal. The Davie Utilities Inc. plant would service the area east of University Drive, between State Road 84 and the South New River Canal.

The two plants were later sold to the two cities. Sunrise claims the agreement between the previous owners is still valid, but Davie officials reject that claim.

Sunrise Council President Larry Hoffman said a decision on whether Sunrise will file for a rehearing of the Supreme Court ruling will depend on an opinion from the city attorney.

``We`ll consult the city attorney,`` Hoffman said, ``and if he feels there is no reason to pursue the case, we`ll drop it. Otherwise, we`ll probably ask for a rehearing.``